The use of a seven-bedroom property in Stevenage as a 'house of multiple occupation' (HMO), which the owner says has been operating for more than a decade, has been ruled unlawful by the local authority.

The owner of the York Road terraced house applied to Stevenage Borough Council for a Lawful Development Certificate on the grounds the property has been used as a HMO for more than 10 years.

A HMO is a shared house occupied by individuals who share basic amenities but do not form a single household.

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The owner says the house has been a HMO since July 2011, when the first tenants moved in.

He added: "Since I have owned the house, there have not been any complaints about the property or tenants."

However, Stevenage Borough Council said: "The applicant has failed to provide sufficient evidence that the property has been operating as a larger house of multiple occupation for a continuous period of 10 years."

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The evidence submitted is only sufficient to prove the property was a HMO in 2011/12, the council's planning officer said.

Stevenage Borough Council has therefore concluded that the use of the property as a HMO is "not lawful".